Here’s what Shakespeare’s plays sounded like with their original English accent
In this short documentary, linguist David Crystal and his son, actor Ben Crystal, look at the differences between English pronunciation now and how it was spoken 400 years ago. They answer the most basic question you probably have right now — How do you know what it sounded like back then? — and they discuss the value of performing Shakespeare’s plays in the original accent…
http://twentytwowords.com/performing-shakespeares-plays-with-their-original-english-accent/
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And the key is, as you mention, our language and many of our sayings are heavily in debt to Shakespeare. That is why the language of the plays themselves is so important. I am not privileged enough to read many things in the original language, and I know I am missing out (most especially in poems such as the Iliad and the Odyssey as you mentioned). But, those of us who are native English speakers are afforded the supreme pleasure of reading Shakespeare in the original with some work and should be encouraged to do so. Giving someone the easy way out will beguile her into thinking she "knows" Shakespeare when she is actually missing about 80%.
I am all for adaptations to get people interested in the themes and plots. I taught Shakespeare to inner-city high school students, and let me tell you, it was not easy. We watched "O" based on Othello as well as West Side Story and Romeo + Juliet. Then we read the play out loud and went over the passage to translate it to their life experiences. They hated it at the time, but many of them came to me later and said that was their favorite class because it was challenging and they felt that they were "learning the same as the rich kids."
The most important thing about Shakespeare compared to other works is that it is a play--it is meant to be spoken. Just as the video above shows, the words and the meter make it much easier for the actor to say as well as to remember. Most of the jokes would be lost (some of which don't translate now anyway) but also the brilliance of each word choice. Much of the meaning is conveyed in the performance, so understanding every word is not necessary.
As with opera, reading summaries before a performance keeps a viewer in the loop so to speak. I attended a very good production of Coriolanus last year and they gave a talk before the performance and even had some of the actors and the director giving their interpretations of the play. That is a great way to open up the text.
New heartthrob Brits such as Tom Hiddleston are giving new life to Shakespeare and I applaud them for trying to revive the Bard with young people. His Coriolanus filled movie theaters with young girls who fell in love with him as Loki in Thor and went to watch a simulcast of the play. If they were my students, I would have given them extra credit. Who knows? Maybe a few will fall in love with Shakespeare as well.
But I do understand your point. My friend is Danish, and he has no feeling for Shakespeare whatsoever, mostly because the language is difficult for a non-native speaker and he has no cultural connection to it (don't get him started on "rotten in the state of Denmark"
. I'm all for doing as much as possible for making them accessible, but it is great that up until now, the language has been preserved as well as possible. I would sincerely mourn if those of this age, which is perhaps the greatest contraction of language, decided to alter it.
I think this will warrant a nice bottle of wine and a candle or two as I sit in a darkened room enjoying this singular treat. I shall report back once I watch it! You are today's most wonderful person!!!!!!!
It's nice being officially recognized as today's most wonderful person. 
I thought it was quite charming how the elder Crystal initially fumbled the word "whore.: 
-- Mal
What struck me about this discussion was the actors mention of actor patron interaction. It seems to me that an audience mere feet away during daylight hours would bring an intimacy both to the performer and the audience. Shakespeare festivals need my attention and respect now more than I would have imagined before seeing this piece.
